Cullens Adopt Bella
by quirkybookworm15
Summary: Renee never left Charlie in this world, and Bella has an older sister. A vampire attacks her parents, leaving Bella an orphan. She learns she has a physical and mental shield, and learns the truth about what happened to her sister. Bella will explore her talents with the Cullens and deal with confrontations from the Volturi and Maria. Extremely minor swearing.
1. Prologue

_**Thank you RosabelleCrombwell for letting me adopt this story.**_

 ** _Thank you to RDoster2012 for being my Beta!_**

 _ **It is finally up! The first part of the rewrite for Cullens Adopt Bella is now up! I am so sorry for making you wait so long, but this took a lot of effort. I hope you enjoy it! Read and Review, please!**_

 **Bookwormlover1**

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 _ **Disclaimer-** Twilight belongs to Stephenie Meyer. I am just using her characters, and I only own Ava._

 _In no way do I own any of Tennyson's works(you'll see why)_

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 **Word Count-7970**

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 **Prologue-** Running and Burning

 **Ava POV:**

 _June 15th, 1990_

I had to get out of there. My family was in danger, and it was my fault. They didn't even know there was a threat. Dad might have been the Chief of Police, but he couldn't protect the family from the monsters that lurk in our world. The danger that came with knowing something I shouldn't was my problem to deal with.

Perhaps it was a good thing Dad and Mom were hardly home- Dad at the police station and Mom off doing whatever hobby she had found that week- because at least they weren't there to see the monsters that have haunted my dreams ever since the first attack when I was five.

Now, four years later, I was hurriedly stuffing two messenger bags with all of my essentials while I recalled what happened that gave me this urgent need to protect my family.

" _Bella, what would you like me to read to you tonight?" I asked my baby sister since I was babysitting her while Mom was out with friends and Dad was working the night shift._

 _She smiled up at me sweetly before answering in her little voice, "The poems you said mommy used to read to you."_

 _I smiled sadly back at her and said, "Okay, I'll go grab the book while you climb into bed."_

 _The truth was, my mother didn't read me those poems as a child I did. Little four-year-old me decided that I would teach myself to read larger books with higher vocabulary since the books at school weren't advanced enough for me, and Mom and Dad were never around to help me appease my thirst for knowledge._

 _Tennyson's poems were my favorite, although Robert Frost was a close second, as his poems were the first I'd ever read._ _I grabbed the book of Tennyson's poems and rushed back up the stairs to our shared room, eager to read her my favorite poem._

" _Ready?" I inquired as I crawled under the covers with her on the small twin bed. She nodded frantically, like she was on a sugar high._

" _Okay, settle down!" I said, laughing._

" _Now, this one is my favorite. It is called_ "There is Sweet Music Here" _._

 _Bella snuggled into my side, closing her eyes so she could fall asleep easier._ _I took a deep breath and began._

" _There is sweet music here that softer falls_

 _Than petals from blown roses on the grass,_

 _Or night-dews on still waters between walls_

 _Of shadowy granite, in a gleaming pass;_

 _Music that gentler on the spirit lies,_

 _Than tired eyelids upon tired eyes;_

 _Music that brings sweet sleep down from blissful skies._

 _Here are cool mosses deep,_

 _And thro' the moss the ivies creep,_

 _And in the stream the long-leaved flowers weep,_

 _And from the craggy ledge the poppy hangs in sleep."_

 _I looked down at Bella and saw that her eyelids were halfway open, so I slowly got out of bed and stuck a compilation of Debussy's works in the stereo, putting_ "Claire de Lune" _on repeat. I then crawled back into bed with Bella, humming the tune of my favorite song while I waited for her to fall asleep._

 _About half an hour later, I heard her breathing become even, and I knew she was in the land of dreams._

 _I quietly tip-toed across the floor, grabbing my pajamas from my small dresser before softly padding out of the room to change in the bathroom. When I finished my nightly routine, it was 9:30, but I still wasn't tired, so I decided to curl up on the couch and read_ "Romeo and Juliet" _for the fun of it, since I'd already read it once just because it was mentioned that I'd be reading it in high school, and I was already well ahead of my class._

 _The familiar words soothed me, and I felt myself nodding off before even finishing_ Act 1 _. I closed my eyes; sure I'd be able to open them in a minute. I soon fell into a dreamless sleep._

 _The book fell off my chest when I was suddenly jolted awake by a tingling sensation in my gut, telling me there was some sort of danger. It felt like it was coming from my room… Oh no-BELLA!_

 _I shot up off the couch, dashed to the stairwell, jumped over the stair that always creaked, and ran up the stairs as fast as I could._

' _Please, please be okay Bella,' I thought._

 _I stopped in front of the door, slightly panting. I realized that if this was all because of my overactive imagination, I could possibly wake Bella up by storming in there. I slowly pushed the door open and was greeted by a horrific sight. There, standing at the foot of my baby sister's bed, was the creature that haunted my nightmares, the beast that was also beautiful, the monster that had tried to kill me when I was only five years old for seeing him for what he truly was- a vampire. Not the same man; he was long dead, but still, a vampire._

 _Not the Hollywood vampires that burn in the sunlight. No, this monster could walk in the sun and could simply stand there while he sparkled like a thousand diamonds. It's true-sparkle._

 _I had been up in a tree reading_ "Sense and Sensibility" _because it was one of those rare sunny days in Forks my fifth birthday, actually, a nice treat. I had been pretty deep in the woods, kind of close to where I'd seen some hikers walk by._

 _All of a sudden, an extremely pale man with midnight black hair had appeared out of nowhere, and his skin started to sparkle. He was barefooted and wore black slacks and a blood red button up shirt, and his sleeves were rolled up._

 _I'd then heard the crunching of leaves before I could continue my study of the person in front of me; the sound was coming from my right, so I knew it wasn't the sparkling man that was before me._ _I turned and saw a greasy-haired hiker who was covered in sweat and dirt making his way towards my tree._

 _The sparkly man had suddenly vanished before reappearing behind the hiker. He'd placed one hand over the hiker's mouth, and one across his stomach, effectively restraining the greasy-haired man. He had placed his lips over the other man's neck when he started thrashing, and after a few moments, he had gone limp._

 _The black-haired man dropped the dead hiker and looked up making me gasp, for his eyes were a bright, crimson red. I had covered my mouth and prayed_ 'Don't see me, don't see me,' _in my head when the sparkly man scanned the area. It had seemed to work at first because his eyes glanced over my spot in the tree, but they suddenly snapped back to where I was._

 _His grin was feral and I then saw the blood dripping down his chin, and I'd realized what he was. I'd read about the the cold one, the blood drinker in the Quileute legends, but I never thought a vampire actually existed._ _He'd started walking lazily toward me, confident I wouldn't be able to get away when a huge horse-sized wolf had abruptly come barreling out of the trees. It had immediately launched itself at the vampire, tearing him to shreds using its huge teeth._

 _The sound was the most horrific one I'd ever heard; a great screeching noise came from the area the vampire and wolf were fighting, like nails scraping down a chalkboard. When the vampire was completely torn to shreds, the wolf went behind a tree and then came out as a man holding a lighter and wearing nothing but shorts._

' _Oh great, now there's werewolves too?' I had sarcastically thought._

 _The werewolf had tossed the lighter on the pile of limbs, watching as they turned into a choking purple cloud of smoke. When the vampire had finally been turned into ash, the werewolf had turned away and shifted back into the huge wolf._ _As soon as the werewolf had been out of sight, I streaked down the tree and ran full speed back to the house._

 _Vampires had haunted my nightmares from then on, and now here was another one of those monsters, standing at the foot of Bella's bed. The vampire was tall, about 6'1, with chocolate brown hair, although he did have the signature pale skin and crimson eyes of a vampire._

" _You were quite hard to find," he stated softly._

" _W-what?" I managed to stutter out. "Why would you want to find me?"_

" _You know about our existence," he murmured, "and therefore, you must either be changed or be killed. You are much too young to be changed, so I suppose I will have to kill you."_

 _I sucked in a sharp breath at that. "P-p-please," I stuttered, "I won't tell a-anybody. I rather f-fancy not being locked up in a padded cell. And then my baby sister, she'll be all alone, with no-"_

" _Ahh, yes your sister is what made it so hard to find you." He turned to look at Bella while she slept. "She has a physical shield, made it very hard to catch your scent indeed. But I was wandering by the town when I caught it by the school. You and your sister both have a remarkable scent, very mouthwatering. Although hers is more like freesias, yours is a rose field in full bloom," he sighed wispily._

" _H-h-how did you even know my scent?" I asked._

" _Well, when you saw Bernard, the vampire you saw-" he said when he saw my confused look, "his mate, Theresa, was close by. You were of course long gone by the time she found his remains, but your scent was all over one tree, and there was one book hanging on the branches." He then pulled out my old copy of_ 'Sense and Sensibility' _from his coat. "Very good story, I must say," he said. "I'm rather surprised a four-year-old was reading it."_

" _I was five," I huffed. "I'm nine now." I get that I'm short, but seriously!_

" _Five," he chuckled. "In any event, that was how I knew your scent. Bernard, Theresa, and I were very close friends, so she knew me to be a decent tracker. She immediately brought me the book, assuming you were somehow apart of Bernard's death, although that is obviously not the case."_

" _Most definitely," I muttered._

" _So, let's get on with it then," he said, appearing in front of my small frame._

 _I had to at least try to live. "C-can we at least do it outside. I-in the woods. I-I don't want her," I gestured to my sleeping sister, "to see me dead and bloody when she wakes up."_

 _His eyes seemed to cloud over before he grinned, seeming happy to know I was accepting my fate. "That seems reasonable," he allowed. "Meet me in the woods."_

 _He then proceeded to jump out my window; I guess that's the way he came in._

 _I dashed down the stairs and grabbed the lighter and the spare from the junk drawer,_

 _stuffing them in my pocket before making my way out the front door._

 _I took only about ten steps into the dark forest before the chocolate-haired vampire grabbed me._

" _You know," I wondered aloud, "I never caught your name."_

" _It's Grayson," he said, turning me around to face him. "Wanted to know your killer's_ _name?" he asked as he bent down to put his mouth to my neck._

" _Yeah," I said. "But it won't be you, Grayson."_

 _He instantaneously paused. "Wha-" he started to say before screaming as he caught fire from the lighter I'd stuffed in his pocket while he wasn't paying attention._

 _I backed up against the tree, squeezing my eyes shut, as I did not want to see him burn alive… or dead, perhaps._

 _When his screams faded, I opened my eyes and saw that Grayson was no more than a pile of ash._

 _I suddenly realized that: what if another vampire came after me? What if Bella was conscious next time? What if Mom or Dad were there? I couldn't stay and leave them vulnerable to another attack when this was my problem to deal with. I hurried inside to pack my bags._

Tears stung my eyes as I finished packing, leaving my bags by the door. I grabbed a notepad and a pen and wrote a short, vague letter to try and explain my absence.

After the note was written, I folded it up and placed it on my parents' bed. I then made my way into mine and Bella's shared bedroom. I realized ' _Claire de Lune'_ was still playing. I left it on, hoping the melody would somehow remind Bella of me when she heard it.

I made my way over to her bed and leant over her, wishing the peaceful look on her face would never have to be tarnished by a fear of vampires.

I finally closed the gap between us by fully bending down and kissing her forehead while stroking her soft, brown hair, the only feature she and I didn't share-I had wavy midnight black hair. Other than that, we both had the same pale skin and brown eyes.

One tear escaped and fell down on Bella's cheek before I could wipe it away.

I turned away from my almost three-year-old sister before more tears could fall and dashed out of the room. I continued running down the stairs, not stopping until I reached my two bags by the front door. I shouldered them, and then ran outside to my little bike. The bags were tossed in the basket of the bike while I locked the front door with the key under the eave.

I climbed on the bike and noticed that my watch said it was midnight. ' _A new day,'_ I thought. _'Too bad it probably won't be a good one.'_

Then I started pedaling away from the house.

Away from my family's life.

{{{{{{{{{{}}}}}}}}}}

 _August 28th, 1996_

"I'm clocking out now, Edith," I said.

"Okay, dearie, see you tomorrow. Happy Birthday!" Edith, the owner of the restaurant I worked at, responded.

I smiled blandly at her before picking up my messenger bag and walking out of the friendly atmosphere of the warm restaurant, into the night air of Seattle.

I was 15-years-old today. 15 years I've walked on this earth. Six of those years I spent my birthday without my family. Six of those years I've spent my time running away from vampires. Six of those years I have been alone.

For most people, birthdays were a happy occasion, but that was if they got to spend it with their families. Me, I haven't celebrated my birthday in the six years I'd left my family behind to protect them from the creatures of the night.

Even if I did want to celebrate the survival of another year, vampires always invariably found me on my birthday.

Perhaps my scent was stronger on the day I was born?

In any event, there was no time for me to commemorate my birth before the vampires found me.

Ever since that night in the woods with Grayson, I always carried a few lighters on me and in my bag. There had been a few close calls over the years, but most of the monsters didn't think that a weak, little human would be able to fight back, so I was able to survive. I usually found out through talking with the vampire trying to kill me that he or she was most often sent by Theresa, who was still trying to avenge her mate's death.

There had only been two times that the vampire trying to kill me had just happened across my "intoxicating" scent and decided to grab a bite. Those were the close calls, because they had been too ravenous with thirst for me try and talk to them. I still didn't understand _that_ ability I seemed to have.

I was so lost in thought that I didn't notice how close I was walking to the dark alley until I was snatched inside by pale, cold hands held over my mouth and stomach. I knew thrashing and kicking would not help me escape, so I willed my body to go limp. Unfortunately, my bag full of lighters fell out of my hands when I relaxed.

"Ahh, what a good little human. You know you're about to be tortured," a female voice whispered in my ear.

Hold up… _tortured_? Who was this… wait… _Theresa?_

I must have said that out loud because she chuckled before saying, "You know my name? Good, I want it to be the last thing that comes from your lips. And wasn't that your wish when you were with Grayson? That you know your killer's name?"

"H-how d-did you kn-know a-about that?" I stuttered. Was she there?

She chuckled again and said, "Oh, I have eyes and ears everywhere, little girl. Now, let's get on with your death, shall we? You are going to die on the same day as my beloved Bernard, and you are going to rot in hell for what you did."

I closed my eyes and whispered, "Just do it."

I felt my left arm being lifted up before it just hung in the air, only being held up by the cold hands of Theresa. ' _Was she pausing for dramatic effect?'_ Suddenly, I felt her cool lips hovering over my veins before swiftly biting and sucking. She stopped after a few mouthfuls then moved on to the next wrist. Soon after she was done with both wrists, I felt a burning sensation; it was like my hands were on fire.

I started thrashing and screaming. "Please, stop! Make it stop!" I yelled.

Through my blurry vision, I saw Theresa smiling. When I felt her pick up my left wrist again, I started screeching, worried she was going to put even more fire in my blood. She just grinned sadistically and put her lips to the bite and once again started sucking, just not using her teeth. I stopped screeching and started moaning in pain. The fire had gone out in my right hand, but it was still raging up my left arm.

"Hey!" a male voice shouted. ' _No,'_ I thought, ' _Run before she gets you too.'_

Theresa's head shot up from my wrist. She took one look at the newcomer and stiffened. She got up like she was preparing to run, but not before leaning down by my ear and whispering, "This isn't over." Then she vanished from my line of sight.

I closed my eyes, knowing I was about to die.

"Are you alright?" a concerned male voice asked.

"No," I grunted. What kind of stupid question was that? Couldn't whoever this person was leave me to die in peace? The fire would turn me to ash soon anyways.

"What hurts? I'm a doctor, I can help you," the voice said again.

Oh, what was the harm in telling him my arm was on fire? I grunted out, "My arm-is on- fire."

He sucked in a deep breath.

"Okay, I'm going to get you out of here; you're going to be just fine."

The last thing I remembered seeing through my hazy vision was a pale, blonde-haired man who bent down, bit my left wrist again, and picked me up before I closed my eyes as the fire took over completely.

{{{{{{{{{{}}}}}}}}}}

 _September 1st, 1996_

The intense heat had finally left my body. Was I dead?

I know to expect this from the moment I ran away, but now that my heart had stopped beating, I was distressed over the fact that I would never see my baby sister again.

I suddenly heard a rustling noise along with the sound of steady breathing. Wait? Was I truly dead?

In a flash, I shot up off the table I was laying on, opening my eyes for the first time.

Everything was so _clear_. Sharp. Defined.

I studied the beautiful room, and when I turned my eyes upwards, the brilliant light overhead was still blindingly bright, yet I could plainly see the glowing strands of filaments inside the bulb. I could see each color of the rainbow in the white light, along with another color I had no name for. Behind the light, I could easily distinguish the grains in the light wood ceiling above. In front of it, I could see the dust motes in the air. They spun like little planets, moving around each other in a carefully choreographed dance.

The dust was so beautiful that I inhaled in shock, but it felt wrong, there was no need for the air. I soon realized that I hadn't been breathing while lying on the table, so my lungs obviously weren't waiting for the influx of air.

The clearing of a throat brought my attention to a pale, blonde-haired man standing by the window. I registered him as the man who had taken me away from the alley after scaring off Theresa.

Hold up. The only thing that could possibly scare a vampire was _another vampire_.

I immediately zeroed in on his eyes, but they were a shining gold color and not the crimson red that I associated with vampires… but still…

I sucked in another breath to speak and felt a slight burning sensation in the back of my throat. It wasn't that noticeable, though.

"Where am I?" I asked. My voice rang and shimmered like a bell, a distinct difference from what I was used to. I asked another question immediately after hearing my new voice. " _What_ am I?"

I was pretty sure I knew, but I needed clarification.

"My name is Carlisle Cullen. You're in Denali, Alaska-" I don't even want to know how I got from Seattle to Denali "-and… you're a vampire."

No. No. No! I didn't want to be a monster!

Carlisle could probably see the distress on my face. "Hey, hey, calm down," he said in a soothing voice.

"I don't want to be a monster," I said.

His face relaxed into a smile. "That's good," he said. "No one in my family wants to be a monster either."

At my confused look, he smiled and said, "My family and I only drink from the blood of animals. That is why my eyes are gold."

"Huh," I blurted. "I've only met vampires with red eyes."

"What?" Carlisle questioned. "When have you met other vampires other than the one I saved you from?"

I didn't want to tell him my story just yet, so I said, "You said there are others? Your family? Perhaps it would be better for me to wait to tell my story with all of them present?"

He agreed to that plan.

"Now, I assume you are thirsty?" He asked, bringing the burning in the back of my throat to my full attention. I put my hand against my throat as if I could stifle it from the outside.

"Yes, you need to hunt," Carlisle said.

I automatically leapt for the window, too thirsty to care about walking out the door.

I already knew how fast vampires were, so as soon as I hit the ground I was off and running. I could hear Carlisle keeping a steady pace with me, although he was a little further behind me.

He gradually gained enough speed to go in front of me and brought me to a screeching halt.

"Listen," Carlisle instructed. "What do you hear?"

I could have said, 'Everything.' From the beat of rap music coming from the road to the whisper of wind shaking the trees, I could hear it all. But I knew he meant something specific, so I let my ears range outward to the southwest, where I could hear the sound of paws softly thudding against the forest floor.

"To the southwest?" I said. "Mountain lion?"

"Yes," Carlisle responded. "Now go, I'll be right behind you."

I took off running, closing my eyes and letting myself become one with the hunt.

The breeze abruptly shifted, blowing stronger from the west. I didn't think; instinct was taking over, compelling me to race after a new fragrance that was even more attractive than that of the mountain lion.

The scent ruled completely. I was aware only of the thirst and the delicious smell that promised to quench it. The only thing that had any chance of snapping me out of my single-minded focus on the scent was an instinct even more powerful, more basic than the need to quench the fire, self-preservation.

I was suddenly alert to the fact that I was being followed. The pull of the irresistible fragrance warred with the impulse to turn and defend my hunt. My feet slowed, the need to protect my back struggling against the desire to extinguish my thirst.

I could then hear my pursuer gaining, and defense won. As I spun, a growl made its way out of my throat.

The feral snarl coming from my own mouth was enough to clear my head for a second.

The wind shifted once again, blowing the smell of damp earth and trees across my face, further freeing myself from the other scent's fiery grip- a scent so delicious it could only be human; I was horrified with myself.

Carlisle hesitated a few feet away. I realized that I had been about to attack the man that had shown me nothing but kindness. He could see the reason return to my face as I held my breath, and he took a step closer to me.

"I have to get out of here," I ground out, using the breath I had.

Surprise crossed his face. " _Can_ you leave?"

I didn't have time to ask him what he meant by that, I just turned and ran in a dead sprint east, away from the mouthwatering taboo scent, concentrating solely on the uncomfortable feeling of scent deprivation that was my body's only response to the lack of air. When I was sure I was far enough away and the air was clean, I stopped.

Carlisle blew past me, surprised by my sudden freeze. He wheeled around and was in front of me in a second.

"How did you do that?" he demanded.

"Run away? I held my breath."

"But how did you stop hunting?"

"Self-preservation… I'm sorry about that."

"Why are you apologizing? I am the one who assumed no one would be this far from the trails," Carlisle said.

"But I growled at you!" I said indignantly.

"Of course you did; it's natural. I just don't understand how you ran away," he responded.

"What else could I do? That person has a life, how do I have any right to take it away from them?"

He stared at me in shock, shaking his head.

"What?" I hesitantly asked.

"You shouldn't be able to stand here and talk to me so calmly and coolly. In my experience, even mature vampires have difficulty breaking off mid-hunt with the scent of blood in the air, yet you just did that. You're acting like you're decades rather than a day old."

"Huh," was my intelligent response.

Carlisle chuckled then said, "Come on, let's go back to that mountain lion."

I once again ran through the forest, to the southwest, where I knew the lion to be. As soon as he was in my range, I leapt for his throat, instinct taking over as I growled back at the big cat snarling and clawing at my granite skin.

I pushed the lion away when it had been drained dry, still feeling a burn in the back of my throat.

"Why am I still thirsty?" I asked Carlisle.

"Because you are a newborn. Come, there are some elk to the north."

We ran north, and this time Carlisle hunted with me. My clothes were already in tatters; the fight with Theresa and non-existent battle with the mountain lion had shredded them. I watched as Carlisle cleanly and efficiently drained the elk without getting a drop of blood on his clothes so I could copy his movements. After he had made his first kill, I ran to the scattering herd and grabbed the biggest elk I could find and drained it in the same neat way Carlisle had. Not one drop of blood fell on my clothes again.

I soon had my fill of blood, feeling a little sloshy. I stood back and waited for him to finish draining the last elk.

"No longer thirsty?" He asked, his eyes burning gold now.

"Nope," I cheerfully stated, glad it was over. "I feel full **."**

"Good," he stated, smiling warmly at me. "Let's go home and get you cleaned up as soon as possible. My family… doesn't exactly know about you yet as they were on a vacation of sorts when I found you. I was unable to go as I was caught up with working at the hospital, but they should be arriving sometime today. Just so you are prepared, some of them don't take kindly to strangers, but they'll warm up to you eventually."

"Thanks for the tip," I said. "And… thank you for saving my life that night. At the time I just wanted to die and be done with it, but when I woke up from the change thinking I was dead, I regretted not doing the things I could have done."

"It was my pleasure," Carlisle said.

We soon arrived at the house, and my newly enhanced hearing and sense of smell could tell that there were other vampires in the house now.

I guess Carlisle's family had gotten home early.

"After you," he said, opening the door to the foyer.

I took my time studying it since it was my first time seeing the foyer, seeing as I had unceremoniously jumped from the window earlier.

The floor was a light colored hardwood with a dark blue rug laying on top of it.

There was a gorgeous crystal chandelier above my head, and a large mirror was hanging on the wall to my left, which was painted a deep brown color. It kind of reminded me of my old eye color.

A chuckle brought me out of my perusal of the foyer, and Carlisle came to stand behind me.

"This is my family," he stated, pointing at each person as he rattled their names off.

"Rosalie and her mate, Emmett," he said, waving his hand over to a tall, statuesque blonde and a giant with black hair and dimples, "Jasper and his mate, Alice," Carlisle said, now pointing to a tall man of about 6'3 with honey blonde hair and a tiny girl-about 4'11-with black hair who resembled a pixie, "my mate, Esme," he said affectionately, moving away from me, toward a woman with caramel colored hair and a motherly smile, "and Edward," he finished, pointing to a bronze-haired male who looked to be the most boyish out of all of them.

I could tell I was receiving a wide range of reactions from all of the family, with Rosalie and Jasper giving off more hostile vibes, and I desperately wished I could hear what they were thinking. Out of the blue, I was bombarded by voices, yet no one's lips were moving.

' _Who is she?'_

' _How does she know Carlisle?'_

' _Probably a newborn, by… '_

' _Oh the poor dear… '_

' _Yay, a new sister!'_

I let out a short yelp in surprise, falling to the ground with my head in my hands, grasping at my head so tightly it was almost painful.

Carlisle was immediately by my side, along with Edward for some reason. "Are you alright?" Carlisle questioned.

"Carlisle," Edward spoke for the first time, "she couldn't hear thoughts, then she wished she could, and started reading minds."

Carlisle had a look of shock on his face. "You can read minds? How? You couldn't before now," he said, firing question after question at me.

Edward addressed Carlisle again. "Give her breathing space. I think the first thing we need to do is ask her what her name is, considering we can't keep calling 'Hey, you.'"

"Where are my manners? I really haven't asked you your name, in the two hours since you woke up?" Carlisle said, appearing bashful.

Esme ran to my side, helping me up even though I didn't need it, acting like a mother hen. She brushed imaginary lint off my torn clothes and asked, "What's your name, sweetheart?"

' _Hello, my name is Ava,'_ seemed like a simple enough way to introduce myself, but a millisecond after opening my mouth, everyone gasped.

' _What?'_ I thought.

Esme turned me to face the mirror, and I saw myself for the first time after being changed into a vampire. My skin was even paler than before, and my midnight black hair that fell to my waist had a new sheen to it, but my eyes were the most shocking: a swirling light purple color before they changed to the crimson red I'd seen on most vampires.

"Why are my eyes red?" I asked. "I thought hunting animals made them gold."

"They'll change to gold in about six months," Carlisle responded. "What we're most concerned about is the fact that you just introduced yourself by planting a thought in our minds, Ava."

 _What?_

"Perhaps it has to do with the mind reading, Carlisle," Edward theorized. "Her gift could have a hypnotizing effect. To know which thoughts she should plant, she needs to be able to read minds. Therefore, Ava could steer an enemy in the wrong direction, or set a friend on the right path."

"Yes," he responded, "and the purple eyes could just be a side effect or an indication that she is using her powers."

I huffed. "Could you not talk about me as though I'm invisible? I am right here, and I can hear you. And what do you mean by 'gift'?" I said.

Emmett suddenly let out a boisterous laugh. "I like her," he stated. "She's got spunk."

Carlisle once again looked abashed and scratched the back of his neck. I had a feeling that if he were human he would be blushing.

"Sorry, Ava," he said. "Now, some vampires have gifts, but they are basically manifestations of our greatest talents in our human life. You seem to be able to plant thoughts in others minds, kind of like a hypnotizing effect."

I thought of all the times I was attacked on my birthday, being able to coerce my attacker into thinking they would win before killing them, bending the odds to my advantage. That certainly seemed plausible with the hypnotizing idea.

"There are three people in this family who have gifts beyond the norm of enhanced senses: Edward, Alice, and Jasper. Edward can read minds, Alice can see the future, and Jasper can control emotions."

"The mind reader, the seer, and the empath," I mused aloud. "Rather talented. So, Carlisle, you were asking about my story earlier. Would you like to hear it now?"

"Why don't we move to the living room and you can tell us your story."

I followed everyone as they made their way to a large living room. Alice and Jasper claimed two identical chairs that were sitting next to each other while Emmett and Rosalie took one side of the black sectional couch. Esme and Carlisle decided to take a beige loveseat, I claimed the other side of the sectional, and Edward lowered himself to the floor in front of my seat, sitting cross-legged.

Everyone stared at me, imploring me to regale them with my tale. Edward snorted at that, and I felt a childish urge to kick the back of his head, but I suppressed it.

"So," I started, feeling a little nervous, "my story starts when I was five years old. I was an adventurous child, and my father was always at work while my mother was off doing whatever hobby she had found that week, so I was usually left to my own devices. I'd like to say that, for the record, I didn't mind spending my early childhood on my own. My parents married young and I don't think they were quite ready for the responsibility that came with a child. I became very self sufficient; this was a good thing, because I was always eager to learn and liked doing things on my own.

So I decided to take ' _Sense and Sensibility'_ , climb a tree, and spend the afternoon reading. All was well until a man I soon learned to be a vampire came out of the woods and stepped into the sunlight, he didn't know I was there. I witnessed him drain a hiker, and at my gasp, he finally discovered I was there. He started slinking toward my tree, and I was only saved by a huge, horse-sized wolf that barreled out of the trees and started attacking Bernard, the vampire. I'll tell you how I learned of his name later.

Anyway, the wolf ripped Bernard to shreds then went behind a tree to grab a pair of shorts with a lighter in them, if I had to guess. Basically, the wolf went out of sight and a man wearing only shorts took his place. The man tossed the lighter on the remains of Bernard and waited until there was nothing but ash before he shifted into the wolf. As soon as the wolf was out of sight, I hopped out of the tree and sprinted to the house, completely forgetting about my book." I sighed.

"Oh, you poor dear," Esme said, "to have to go through such a thing at such a young age."

I smiled sadly at her. "Yes, well, such is life, sometimes. That brings me to four years later, I had an almost three-year-old sister, and I was two months away from turning nine; June 10th, 1990, was the date, actually. Dad was working the night shift, and Mom was on vacation with friends, so I was left to babysit Bella, my sister. After she fell asleep at 9:30, I was not tired, so I decided to reread ' _Romeo and Juliet'_. When it was mentioned it would be taught in high school, I went ahead and got it and read through the story in two days. I didn't even make it through _Act I_ before falling asleep, but I was awakened by this sense of dread that was coming from mine and Bella's shared room, so I immediately dashed up the stairs.

A horrific sight greeted me when I opened the door. At the foot of the bed was a vampire who said that I was very hard to find, insinuating that he had been looking for me for whatever reason. He then went off to explain that Bernard's mate, Theresa, had been nearby that day in the woods. My scent was all over the tree, near where she found his ashes, so she assumed that I had somehow killed him. She went to Grayson, the vampire in my bedroom, as he was a tracker, and gave him my copy of ' _Sense and Sensibility'_ since it was covered in my scent.

He said that it was harder to find me than it should have been because Bella had a physical shield that shrouded the house and masked our scents, but he smelled mine when passing by the elementary school one night. That implored him to say that my scent was like a field of wild roses, and apparently rather appealing. He then said he should get on with the killing, so I quickly formulated a plan and asked to be killed in the woods so Bella wouldn't wake to see my corpse.

His eyes fogged over before saying it seemed reasonable. I think that was the first time I noticed my ability to bend the odds to my advantage. He told me to meet him in the woods. I dashed downstairs and grabbed two lighters from the junk drawer then walked outside, still playing the part of the scared human, although I was absolutely terrified while enacting my plan.

That plan was to get him close enough to me that I would be able to put the lighter in his pocket and let him burn; I closed my eyes for that part. When he was dead, I realized Theresa would keep coming for me. I had to protect my family, even if it meant leaving them. I packed two bags and got on my little bike and pedaled away at midnight."

I paused again, waiting to see their reactions to my killing Grayson.

Emmett finally said, "Badass," and Esme sped over to slap his forehead. "No cussing," she said. I giggled a little before continuing.

"For the next six years, I moved all over Washington State, running to a new city every time a vampire attacked me. The attack always came on my birthday, which was a strange occurrence, but at least it allowed me to be prepared. I always had a lighter on hand or in my bag so I could reenact the plan I used with Grayson. There were only two times the plan didn't work, and those attacks came from vampires who were insane with thirst. They didn't happen on my birthday, either, just days that I wasn't cautious enough.

"Anyways, three days ago, August 28th, was my 15th birthday. I had just clocked out from my shift at the restaurant I worked at, and was so lost in thought that I didn't realize how close to the alley I was, until I was pulled in by two cold, pale hands. I knew that there was no escaping, that my luck had finally run out, so I willed my body to go limp.

A female's voice then whispered in my ear, and, I quote, 'Ahh, what a good little human. You know you're about to be tortured.'

It took me a few seconds to understand that it was Theresa. I must have uttered her name out loud when I did figure it out because she said, 'You know my name? Good, I want it to be the last thing that comes from your lips. And wasn't that your dying wish when you were with Grayson? That you know your killer's name?' I couldn't have been more shocked than I did then. How did Theresa know about that? When I asked how she knew, she responded by saying, 'Oh, I have eyes and ears everywhere, little girl. Now, let's get on with your death, shall we? You are going to die on the same day as my beloved Bernard, and you are going to rot in hell for what you did.' I told her to just do it.

"She lifted my left wrist to her mouth and waited for a minute, building suspense, before biting and sucking in a few mouthfuls. She quickly moved to my other wrist and did the same thing. A few seconds later, I felt the burning fire build in my hands. I begged her to make it stop, and she did put out the fire in my left wrist by sucking out the venom, but the fire was still raging up my right arm. She started to lift that arm but we heard a male voice yell 'Hey!' She stiffened, like she was afraid of something, I just didn't know what. She moved to run, but before she did, Theresa leaned down by my ear and whispered, 'This isn't over.' Then she ran.

"That's when Carlisle comes into the story, and he asked me if I was alright, and I remember thinking what a stupid question that was, couldn't I just be left to die in peace? But what was the harm in telling this supposed doctor that my arm was on fire? The last thing I heard before succumbing to the fire was, 'Okay, I'm going to get you out of here; you're going to be just fine.'"

I turned to face Carlisle directly. "What were you doing in Seattle, anyways?" I asked him.

"Alice called and told me to go to Seattle, that something big was going to happen, she just wasn't sure what."

Everyone turned to Alice. "I'm sorry for not telling you about Ava," she said. "I didn't want to get your hopes up of getting a new sibling only for her to die in the end."

"Well, you did have a hand in saving my life, so thank you," I told her. At their confused looks, I said, "When the fire finally died down, I was upset because I believed myself to be dead, and I was distressed over the fact that I would never see Bella again. Then when I realized I was a vampire, I was upset because I did not want to be a monster, but that was before I heard of the vegetarian lifestyle."

Everyone smiled and Carlisle said, "Ava, while you seem to have exceptional self-control, we would like to help you, through your newborn year at least. Would you like to stay and be apart of this family?"

I played around with the name 'Ava Cullen' in my head for a little bit. There really was no need for deliberation; I already knew what the answer was.

I smiled at them all.

"Yes."

{{{{{{{{{{}}}}}}}}}}

 _August 28th, 1997_

I was supposed to be 16-years-old today. 16 years I have walked on this earth. Nine of those years I spent with the family that gave birth to me, the family I shared blood with. Six of those years I spent my birthday without my family, spending my time running away from vampires. Six of those years I was alone. This past year I have stayed with my adopted family, the family connected by venom rather than blood. I've had wrestling matches with my older brothers, shopping trips with my sisters and surrogate mom, and vacations spent with the entire family. I had learned how to properly use my gift, which frequently helped when pranking Emmett. Everyone had learned of my exceptional self-control through the story of that first hunting trip, all of them having a good laugh at my expense.

But now that I had a great relationship with my adopted family, I wanted to see how my human family was faring.

"Carlisle," I said, alerting him to my presence.

"Ava, what is it you need?" he asked.

I started making my case. "Well, you have all been very good to me this past year, and I thank you for that, but I want to go see how my human family is doing. I'll try and be quick, and I promise I'll come back."

He smiled warmly at me. "I understand. You have your phone if you need to contact us. Have a safe trip."

"Thank you," I said, then ran to the garage. I hopped in my car and drove speedily down to Forks. If my research was correct, Mom, Dad, and Bella still lived in our old house.

I stored my car in the garage at the house Carlisle had said the Cullen's had in Forks for if they came down for a few years. As soon as I was out of the car, I was off and running towards the house I hadn't seen in seven years.

A smile made its way onto my face as I stopped at the tree line and spotted the house. I started walking at human speed towards the window so I could look inside, but something stopped me: a scream.


	2. Chapter 1

**Thank you RosaBelle Crombwell for letting me use the baseline of her plot!**

 **Thank you to RDoster2012 for being my Beta!**

 _I'm sorry this chapter took so long to write. I hope you enjoy it! Happy Reading!_

 **Bookwormlover1**

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Word Count-5305

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 **Chapter 1-Lost Family**

 **Bella POV:**

 _August 28th, 1997_

"May I be excused?" I asked my silent mother, wanting to escape the melancholy atmosphere of the kitchen.

She just nodded, so I trudged slowly up the stairs to my bedroom.

I sat down at my desk, my eyes flickering over to a picture of my older sister Ava, holding me a few days after I was born. Ava was six at the time, but I had no other pictures of her from when she still lived with us. A year after she vanished, Charlie and Renee had boxed up all her things and locked them in the attic. I wasn't allowed to go up there.

Today was her 16th birthday, which was why Renee was more distant than usual. Actually, she was more like a living zombie. This state occurred only two days of the year: the day of Ava's disappearance, and her birthday.

However, both Renee and Charlie could not cope with the disappearance of their first child. The indistinct memories of my bubbly mother could no longer describe her personality. Now she was detached and absentminded. The same could be said of my hazy recollections of Charlie's crinkly-eyed smile. He was so aloof, and his gruff nature made him uncommunicative. My parents drifted through life, going about their day to day routines, but not really seeing the world pass by.

This meant that I was left to raise myself. Self-reliance did have its good moments though.

Because my life was so boring, I decided to let education amuse me. I wasn't allowed to skip a grade, or three or four, so I was still starting fourth grade on September 1st, but I managed to find the tests and worksheets online at the library computers.

I tore through the pages of books, printed off all of the worksheets, and was now studying Geometry for math, Astronomy for science, European History for social studies, and college freshman English Lit through online courses for UW. I was fluent in Spanish and was slowly creeping through Italian. I had taught myself to play the flute and piano by sneaking into the school's music room while Renee was at work. I did this all on my own time. Granted, it was ample considering my mundane life, but still done during my free time. I was at the top of my class, but most people assumed I was just a know-it-all, including my teachers.

Self-sufficiency also helped me learn more about Ava. I pretended to be sick yesterday as I knew both Charlie and Renee would be at work, and as soon as they were gone, I ransacked the entire house looking for things about Ava. I couldn't get into the attic, but I did find a letter she had written. I didn't have time to read it yesterday, but now seemed to be a good time.

I unfolded the letter and began reading.

 _Dear Mom and Dad,_

 _I understand that this is short notice, but I know if I try to say goodbye to your faces, it will make leaving that much harder._

 _There is a monster chasing me, and I don't want either of you or Bella to be caught in the crossfire. This is my fight; I won't allow any of my family to be hurt._

 _I know that you will not understand what I mean by monster, but it is better that you do not know. Once you are aware of the creatures of our world, the monster will be after you as well._

 _Please believe that this is not an excuse I'm making up to leave you. I hate even the idea of separation, but it must be done so I can protect you._

 _Stay safe, lead normal lives, and move on. I know that will be difficult, but the least you can do is try. Please, it is my last request. Know that I love you, and kiss Bella goodnight for me, would you? She deserves a chance of a normal life._

 _Your daughter,_

 _Ava_

Oh dear goodness. Ava left to protect us? What's the monster she was talking about… a murderer? What would a psycho killer want to do with Ava? Are my questions ever going to be answered?

' _Probably not,'_ the pessimistic voice in my head said.

' _Shut up,'_ I thought, sighing as I turned to look out the window.

The clouds were ever present, and it was also raining, but what else could you expect when living in Forks?

I sighed again as I turned away from the window to take stock of my room. It wasn't a typical nine-year-old's bedroom. Instead of the stereotypical pink walls, vanity, and dolls scattered everywhere, I had a lumpy blue comforter on my twin bed, a beat up old pillow, an old keyboard in the corner, three bookshelves overflowing with books, and…

"AAHH!" A sudden scream pierced the air in the silent house. I recognized it as my mother's. I jumped up out of my seat, and rushed down the stairs. I froze on the third step, and was greeted by a horrific sight in the kitchen.

At the foot of the steps, Charlie lay dead, his eyes wide and unseeing. Near the sink on the other side of the room was a beautiful, terrifying woman with blood red eyes and a mane of black hair who had Renee by the throat.

I took another step forward, forgetting about the second step. It made a loud creaking noise as usual, but it was enough to alert the pale woman to my presence. She snapped her head up, staring straight at me. She smirked in my direction before turning back to Renee and snapping her neck, letting her limp body crash to the floor.

She turned back to me and started walking towards me slowly, as if she was stalking me like a lion would stalk its prey.

' _Vampire…'_ Something inside my head whispered to me. It was a little startling to hear the sudden voice that was not my own.

A _vampire?_ They're supposed to be myths! And even if they did exist, what would one want with my family? Wait… are vampires the monster Ava was talking about in her letter? Whatever this woman was, she was not human.

' _Run!'_ The voice urged me. I started to run towards the front door, but quick as a flash, the red-eyed woman appeared in front of me. I sucked in a breath sharply, and she grinned sadistically. Maybe she could be a vampire, what with her speed.

I took a step back; she took one forward. I took another step back, and she started to move forward again, but all of a sudden there was a soft pink glow hovering over me, in almost a protective way. It flowed like a river out of me, drifting towards the woman and surrounding her. She froze in her tracks as the glow surrounded her, almost as if she couldn't move. I could see her straining against the pink glow, but it was to no avail. Once the vampire woman was completely encased, the glowing river stopped pouring out of me, although she remained completely immobile. The glow then proceeded to crush her until all that remained was a pile of limbs; the glow still hovered over the pile.

' _Could she put herself back together?'_ I asked myself.

That didn't matter, I needed to gather my valuables and leave. I darted up the stairs, grabbing two bags. I tossed all my clothes in one and my favorite books, medical texts, and sheet music in the other. I grabbed the picture of me and Ava and her letter, pressing them inside the pages of my copy of " _Romeo and Juliet"_. I also threw in my Debussy CD; every time I played it, I just felt closer to Ava somehow. I tossed both bags over my shoulder and ran back down the stairs.

I made my way to the front door, hopping over the pile of limbs and Charlie's corpse, trying not to think of the fact that both of my parents were dead. They may not have been the best, but they were still my parents.

Just as I got to the front door, the voice from earlier was back.

' _Burn the vampire before you leave!"_ What? I paused and looked around.

I knew Charlie always carried a lighter on him. I walked up to his body and took the lighter he always kept in his jacket. I kissed his cold cheek, feeling that was the best way I could say goodbye, then threw the lit zippo lighter at the pile of limbs that used to be the vampire woman.

I didn't wait to see what happened, I ran to the front door and out of the house. I could feel the instant heat when the house caught fire.

I collapsed in a heap on the sidewalk next to the mailbox and cried. I didn't know what to do now that my parents were gone. I was only nine after all.

After about ten minutes, I heard the sounds of sirens. Five minutes later, two fire trucks and an ambulance appeared. They quickly put the fire out, and while the EMTs checked me out, they thought it would be best for me to go to the hospital and make sure I was completely fine.

During the ride in the ambulance, I was asked why I had two bags with me when the house caught fire. I came up with a quick story, saying that we were planning on taking a three day family trip before school started. The bags were by the mailbox, waiting to be put in the car, when I got out there.

At the hospital, nurses and doctors surrounded me, firing question after question at me, asking what had happened. I briefly considered telling them the truth, but as soon as the thought crossed my mind, the voice whispered harshly.

' _Don't tell them! It will be dangerous!'_

"I'm not quite sure what happened. I was in my room, then all of a sudden I smelled smoke. I ran outside, but my parents never came out."

It was the best I could do, but they seemed convinced. They all nodded, with sad looks on their faces.

Even though there was nothing wrong with me, they decided it would be best to keep me overnight so Social Services could be called and take me to a group home in the morning. I knew for a fact that the nearest group home was in Seattle, which was four hours away from Forks, so I settled in for the night. I knew it would be a long day tomorrow.

I closed my eyes, and sleep quickly overcame me.

{{{{{{{{{{}}}}}}}}}}

 _August 29th, 1997_

I woke up around 7:30 in the morning. I was checked over one last time and had to hurriedly eat breakfast before the caseworker arrived. A tall, dark-haired man of about 6'5" wearing a light grey suit walked into the room just as I finished chewing my last bite; I assumed him to be from Social Services. I was proven right when he introduced himself.

"Good morning, Isabella, my name is Mr. McBride. I'll be driving you to a boys and girls group home in Seattle. Are you about ready to leave?" He asked.

I swallowed and said, "Yes, and please just call me Bella. My bags are just by the door."

"Excellent," he said. "Let's get going then."

I got up from my chair and walked towards the door, grabbing my bags and slinging them over my shoulder on the way. Mr. McBride led the way down the hall to the front desk so he could sign me out of the hospital. As soon as that was done, he swiftly walked to the door, holding it open for me as I walked by.

Huh. Here was a man who was actually raised right. Most of the high school boys I observed, and even the adult males, had no respect for for women or actually acted like honorable men. I was the only one who noticed this, mostly because I like the classics where men were raised to be proper gentlemen.

While I mused over that thought, he walked by me, grabbing my hand and leading to me to his car.

I clambered into the expensive Mercedes and buckled the seatbelt, trying to get comfortable as I knew I was in for a long car ride. Mr. McBride climbed into the front seat. Just before he started the car, he asked, "Bella, is there anything you will need during the ride? If so, please just ask me now, and I'll get it for you. It is a long drive, and there will be few stops."

I smiled at his considerateness before responding. "No thank you, Mr. McBride. I'm all set." I pulled a book out of my bag as I answered.

"Okay, then," he said as he pulled out of the parking lot and onto the road. I opened up " _Romeo and Juliet,"_ smiling fondly at the picture of Ava and me before I started reading, relaxing into the seat.

I was so into the story that I didn't notice we had arrived until the car stopped moving. I looked up and glanced out the window. There was a huge Victorian-style house to my right.

It was made of a red brick, and the roof was covered in black shingles. The door was a light grey and was surrounded by white trim. To the left of the door was a shady porch that had white wicker chairs with black seat cushions sitting by the window. The right side of the door had a window seat, and the shutters on the windows were the same grey as the front door. The top floor had six windows; I guessed the house was renovated for the purpose of letting the children have their own rooms, so each window probably went with a room.

I then noticed two figures standing by the door. One was obviously the woman who ran the home. She was quite tall, about 5'9", and you could tell her hair was bleached blonde.

The girl next to her was probably there to show me around. She looked to be 15-years-old, and was rather short, around 5'2". She had long black hair that fell to her waist, and extremely pale skin. It looked like her body had been completely drained of melanin. In fact, if you knew of their existence, you could even say she had the skin of a vampire.

During my time of studying the house, Mr. McBride had gotten out of the car and walked around to stand by my door. I unbuckled and grabbed my bags. I made a move to open the door myself to play with him, but he beat me to it.

"A lady should never have to open the door for herself," he said eloquently, although there was a slight smirk on his face. I decided to play along.

"You think of me as a lady? Why, thank you kind sir, but I'm not sure if I could ever be a lady," I said, pouting slightly before bursting into a round of giggles. He chuckled and said, "Well, it has been a pleasure escorting you to your new home, Miss Bella. I hope you will be alright. If you ever need me, just give me call," he said, handing me a card with his information on it.

"Thank you," I said.

"It's no problem," he replied. "Now, why don't I introduce you to the housemother so you can get settled in?"

I nodded and we started walking to the two-story house.

We arrived at the steps, and Mr. McBride said, "Bella, this is Ms. Jenna, the housemother. Ms. Jenna, this is Isabella Swan."

"It is nice to meet you," I said politely.

"Likewise," she replied in a nasally tone. Now that we were up close, I could see that her eyes were a dull brown. She turned to Mr. McBride and said, "Thanks for driving her here, she'll be in good hands."

He nodded and turned to go back to his car. Once the Mercedes was out of sight, Ms. Jenna gestured to the other girl, saying, "Isabella, this is Avalyn. She will be showing you around the house." With that she turned away, leaving me alone with Avalyn.

"Come on," she said and went up the steps to my new home.

We walked inside, and she said, "To the right is the living room, and to your left is the kitchen. No one is allowed on the porch unless you're given express permission by Ms. Jenna. At the back of the house is the meeting room where families can meet the children. Upstairs is split in half; one side for boys, the other for girls. There is only one other girl, so you will get your own room, although we do share a bathroom. Let's go upstairs so you can meet her."

She led me up the stairs and turned to the right, which I guess was the girls' side. She stopped at the first door, knocking softly. "Gracie," she quietly said, "there is a new girl named Bella here. Would you like to meet her?"

A young girl with straight, dirty blonde hair that fell just past her shoulders and bright blue eyes peeked her head around the door. When she spotted me, her face widened into a grin. She stepped out from behind the door and said, "Hi Bella, my name is Gracie Hamilton! I'm seven, how old are you? It is so nice to have another girl here; there are four boys, and none of them will let me play with them. We are going to have so much fun together!"

She bounced forward with every sentence, making me lean back from how close to my personal space she got. Avalyn started chuckling at this and said, "Gracie, give her some space! Bella needs to get settled in first, then she will come and chat with you, okay?"

Gracie frowned slightly, but her smile soon appeared again. "Okay, I'll talk you you later Bella!"

She closed the door, and I let out a breath I didn't know I'd been holding. "Is she always like that?" I whispered to Avalyn, only just now looking into her eyes. They were a swirling purple, and they shone with intelligence, as if she observed even the tiniest of details. At least now I was fifty percent sure she was not a vampire. As far as I knew, vampires had red eyes.

She snorted in response to my question. "Oh, absolutely," Avalyn replied. "You should see her when we actually get to go to a festival or some other event. It's almost frightening, and I have been here for a year."

"What happened to your parents?" I asked. A second after questioning her I realized it might be painful for her to talk about her parents. "Oh, nevermind, you don't have to answer that if you do not want to."

"I don't mind you asking," she said. "I ran away from home seven years ago because I felt neglected. I lived on the streets for six years until a serial killer tortured me. He left me bleeding in an alley where the authorities found me a few minutes later. They took me to the hospital; once I was as good as new, they dumped me here.

I actually found out today that my parents were killed by the same serial killer just yesterday. I guess he had some sort of grudge against my family. Either way, he was taken into custody and is serving a life sentence, so that is taken care of."

Avalyn sounded so convincing, even though the tone of her voice seemed off. I just wanted to believe that her story was true. Then I looked into her eyes and saw something there that showed me she was lying in some way. I shook of the spell that she had cast over me, and a look of shock crossed over her face before she schooled her features back into a neutral state.

Hmm. It seems the fifty percent would be changing to eighty-four percent. There was something inhuman about Avalyn, and I planned to discover what that was. Perhaps befriending her would help me learn more about her. If I found nothing, at the very least I would have someone to guide me into the world of living without a family, like a master would teach an apprentice about his trade.

We stopped in front of a closed door at the end of the hall, and I smiled up at her; some sort of emotion flickered across her mask before she could hide it.

"This is your room," she muttered.

"Thank you," I said.

I opened the door and sucked in a deep breath. This was my room?

The bedroom had sleek, white walls, and the right wall had a massive rose, lily, and poppy design painted in a glossy black on it. There were also some baby blue decorations and swirls flying around the flowers. A fulled-sized bed was in the right corner by the window, partially covering the design; the frame was black while the cover was a light-blue. Next to that on the left wall was a light-grey desk that I knew I could use for worksheets and reading through my journals. A light-blue bean bag sat on the floor next to a closet, a perfect reading nook.

"Wow," I breathed.

Avalyn chuckled behind me. I turned around to face her, and trying to make conversation, I said, "My older sister's name is Ava."

She stiffened slightly. What was that about?

"Oh?" Avalyn replied nonchalantly, although her posture remained rigid.

"Yes," I continued, waiting to see if I could get another reaction out of her, "she disappeared a few months before my third birthday, and no one ever knew why. I recently found a letter she had left, but Charl… er… my dad and mom never told me about it. I guess they gave up hope when they found it; the letter was slightly depressing.

A child telling their parents to forget them? No parent could do that, and then Ava said a murderer was after her, so she left to protect us. That was probably the final straw. How could a ten year old girl survive an attack from a murderer, after all? Ava was presumed dead, and the case was closed. My mom and dad became very depressed, and even after reading Ava's letter, some part of me believes she is still alive. Must be our sisterly bond."

Throughout my speech, Avalyn seemed to get more closed off rather than opening up.

She quickly said, "Dinner's at six sharp. If you're late, you won't get any food," before turning away. I watched as she briskly walked down the long hallway to the second bedroom until she vanished behind the door.

I didn't mean to get _that_ kind of reaction from her. Avalyn was a an enigma. The mystery stayed with me for the rest of the day.

I went back into my bedroom and started unpacking the few things I had, going through the motions. Once that was done, I re-opened " _Romeo and Juliet"_ , but the words didn't register in my brain.

When I was called down to dinner, I was not aware of the other children rough-housing around me. I did not pay attention to my food. I _did_ notice that Avalyn was missing from the table. ' _Where could she be?'_ I thought. ' _Why don't the other kids see that Avalyn wasn't there?'_

As soon as dinner was finished, we were herded into our bedrooms to get a "good night's sleep." Instead of quickly falling into dreamland, I laid awake for hours, wondering how I could makes things up with Avalyn.

I finally drifted off around midnight, my thoughts still circling around the same question: Who, _or what_ , was Avalyn?

{{{{{{{{{{}}}}}}}}}}

 _August 30th, 1997_

My dreams were plagued by nightmares.

I watched Charlie and Renee fall to the ground screaming while the house burned in the background. I could make out the vampire that killed them laughing maniacally in the dark, blood dripping down her lips.

I saw a young girl about my age with ivory skin and black hair climb onto a bike just outside my old house. When she looked up, I gasped. Her eyes were shining with tears, but that wasn't what shocked me; the girl had the exact same color eyes as me.

The dream switched again, and I saw an older version of the girl. She was walking towards an alley when two hands snatched her and dragged her inside. My dreamself moved closer to watch what happened. Through the darkness, I could see the girl writhing on the ground with blood running around her wrists. She let out a shriek, and I jolted awake, my head buried in the pillow to muffle my screams.

I slowly got up once I stopped screaming and noted that the clock read eight-thirty in the morning. ' _It's going to be a long day,'_ I thought as I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes.

I quickly dressed in dark-blue jeans and a gray polo shirt. I made my way downstairs to the dining room. Ms. Jenna coldly said to me, "Breakfast ended half an hour ago, so you won't eat until lunch. School starts on Monday, but until then you will have to do your chores. You will start by cleaning the bathrooms. Once that is done, go to the laundry room and do the laundry. I will ring a bell to let everyone know when lunch starts. Now go."

I nodded and walked back upstairs and found cleaning supplies under the bathroom sink. I immediately got to work. I wiped down the counter and sink first, which was filled with toothpaste. Then I scrubbed the grout that was getting a little moldy in the shower. After finishing that, I wiped down the the toilet lid and seat before scrubbing the inside of the toilet bowl. I finally took the rugs and dirty towels down to the laundry room before heading back upstairs to mop the tiles. When I exited the bathroom, it was shining and everything looked brand new.

I repeated the same process in the boys bathroom, although it took a little longer since there was a bigger mess; more boys, more mess, I guess.

Once I finished with the bathrooms, I went back down to the laundry room. There was three of everything, so I was able to do one load of towels and rugs in one washer, one load of darks, and one load of lights. I waited down there for an hour before moving everything over to the dryers.

I patiently waited for another hour for the clothes to dry, twiddling my thumbs. The first load done was the towels and rugs. I folded the towels into two separate piles: boys and girls. I quickly brought everything upstairs, putting the towels away neatly under the sink and spreading the clean rugs out on the floor.

When I arrived in the laundry room again, both the darks and lights were done. I made two piles of boys and girls clothes before I started folding. I hadn't met any of the boys yet, so I put their clothes in piles based on sizes. I could easily distinguish which clothes were Avalyn's and which ones were Gracie's though, so that was easy enough.

I left the boy's' clothes in a laundry basket on their side of the house. Since I knew whose clothes belonged to who for the girls, I knocked on their doors. Gracie let me in, bouncing around cheerfully and talking a hundred miles a minute.

Avalyn was the exact opposite. When she opened the door, her face was expressionless. She took the clothes from my hands and then shut the door in my face.

That was the only time I saw her because when the lunch bell rang two minutes later, she once again was not at the table. By that time I was starving though, so I only vaguely noticed that she wasn't eating with the rest of us.

Once everyone finished eating, Ms. Jenna stood up and said in her snooty voice, "Okay, if you finished with your chores, you are free to do what you want for the rest of the day. If you haven't get them done!"

Oh thank goodness! I was exhausted after all that work.

I dashed up the stairs to escape the traffic and ran to my room. I grabbed " _Romeo and Juliet"_ again and sat in my beanbag chair to start reading.

I had just closed the book when the dinner bell rang. I got up and followed the line of foster children going downstairs. I sat down at in one of the available chairs and immediately dug in.

I finished eating a few minutes before everyone else. I sat back to wait for them to consume the rest of their food when Ms. Jenna suddenly spoke up.

"Isabella, are you feeling okay? The whole house was filled with your screams this morning," she said with false concern.

I was filled with an unexpected anger. Who was she to openly talk about my nightmares in front of everybody? I snapped at her, asking with enmity in my tone, "What do you care? And my name is Bella!"

The whole table was so silent you could hear a pin drop.

"Why you little twit!" Ms. Jenna said, breaking the silence. "I'm just trying to see if you need help! Come here, young lady!"

Avalyn seemed to appear out of the shadows. She stepped to my side, saying, "Ms. Jenna, she's had a rough few days, what with losing her parents. It would be a traumatic experience for anyone. Please, pardon her actions for now."

Avalyn's eyes swirled even more than usual, and Ms. Jenna's eyes clouded over before she said snootily, "Very well. Go upstairs, and if she ever acts like this again, both of you will be punished."

She nodded and grabbed my arm, forcefully dragging me up the stairs. Considering how thin she looked, Avalyn was pretty strong.

When we arrived at my door, she let go of me. She turned to stalk into her room, but stopped when I said, "Thank you. I'm sorry if I offended you last night in some way."

I spun around to go into my room when I felt a hand fall on my shoulder. I turned back to stare directly into Avalyn's observant eyes. She smiled slightly and faintly said, "It was no problem, and you didn't offend me. I wasn't in the best state of mind yesterday and I lashed out at you because of it. Can we start over?"

"Yes," I said, grinning.

Her smile grew wider, and before my nerves could get the better of me, I wrapped my arms around her waist and hugged her. She stiffened for a moment before relaxing into the embrace. When I let go, her smile actually reached her eyes. She tentatively leaned forward and hugged me again. After Avalyn let go, she said, "Good night," then walked to her bedroom.

I closed my door and got ready for bed. Once I finished my nightly routine, I climbed under the covers and closed my eyes, thinking about Avalyn. I felt a sort of bond to her, almost familial.

In any event, I had a friend in Avalyn. I drifted to sleep easily, thinking of our hug.

* * *

 _So what did you think of it. I enjoy constructive criticism, so please review!_

 **Bookwormlover1**


	3. Chapter 2

**Thanks to Rosabelle Crombwell for letting me use her plotline!**

 **Thanks to RDoster2012 for beta reading this story!**

 _God, has it really been two weeks since I last updated? I'm so sorry folks, but I hope you enjoy the chapter! Happy reading!_

* * *

Word Count- 5244

* * *

 **Chapter 2-Choices**

 **Bella POV:**

 _September 6th, 1997_

I've been stuck in this place, now known as the hellhole, for a week, doing the same routine over and over again, day after day. The repetitive motions were not calming at all.

On Sunday I was informed that it was the only free day any of the kids got. I spent my time reading " _Wuthering Heights"_ and spending time getting to know Avalyn. I learned her last name was Masen and that she was 15-years-old. I hung out with Gracie too, but I did not relate to her very well.

It wasn't exactly her personality or her hobbies; I was acquaintances with plenty of girls who loved pink and all things shopping, but we just didn't share the same loves in life, which left us with not much in common to talk about. She and I just didn't really click. Gracie had never really known a life outside of the group home, and I wasn't used to this 'place' like she was.

At six-thirty in the morning on Monday , Ms. Jenna banged on a gong, an actual gong, to wake us up. It completely covered the sound of my alarm clock and jolted me out of bed. I got up, threw on a set of clothes without caring what it was, and was downstairs by six-forty; it had taken me awhile to brush through my tangled hair. By seven I was completely finished getting ready, with a small backpack in my hands. Avalyn lent it to me.

We all filed into one bus, which dropped us off at our different schools. Gracie stuck by my side to escort me to the office so I could find out where my classroom was. When we entered the office the receptionist looked up from her desk.

"Hello Gracie, and you must be Bella. Ms. Jenna called this morning and said that you came to her home over the weekend. She didn't give us much information, but told us your age and grade level. She will have to come down today to officially register you in school. But in the meantime, we have you in Mrs. Wickman's class.

Gracie, could you please show Bella where the class is? And please don't be late for your class. My name is Mrs. Hewitt by the way, and if you need anything, please come see me and I will help you."

I smiled at Mrs. Hewitt and politely thanked her, then Gracie led me down a long hallway before gesturing to a classroom.

I took a deep breath before entering. This was so strange, I have never been in a different school before, always having gone to Forks Elementary, and growing up with the same faces my whole life. To say I was nervous would be an understatement.

I hesitantly opened the door and walked inside. The entire class immediately went silent, and looked at me. I felt my face grow hot at their attention. I was so used to fading into the background.

A kind-looking woman with straight brown hair, green eyes, and freckles came over and told me she was Mrs. Wickman. She placed her left hand on my back and introduced me to the class. "Everyone, this is Bella Swan. She just moved here, so be nice."

' _Thank you for kind people,'_ I thought. She didn't openly announce the fact that I was an orphan; she and I would get along just fine.

Mrs. Wickman then steered me towards the back of the class after getting me my books, placing me at an empty group of desks. Glory hallelujah, here was a teacher who actually knew I liked working alone.

I quietly thanked her and she smiled at me before going back to the front of the class.

That was when I started getting restless, having already learned the material she was teaching. I sighed and settled in for a boring day.

When I got home, there was a list of chores on the wall next to the stairs. I dumped my school bag in my bedroom then went back downstairs to complete the tasks set before me. I managed to get everything done in an hour, so I had thirty minutes before dinner to read. I did just that, and I reluctantly set down " _Wuthering Heights"_ before making my way down to the dining room. I ate my dinner silently, not wanting to make an example of myself, then went back upstairs as soon as I could. I spent the next few hours reading and turned the lights out at nine, but not before setting my alarm for six-twenty so I could be up before the ghastly gong woke me.

This became my schedule for the rest of the week: Get ready for school, suffer through learning material I already knew, do chores, read, eat dinner, and read for the rest of the evening. I couldn't believe that it had been a week and I was already bored.

It was finally the weekend, and I had just finished my chores. I was sitting in my room waiting for lunch, bored half to death as Avalyn and Gracie were still working and I did not feel like reading. I couldn't very well practice on a piano or flute, so testing my music skills was out of the question, and since I also didn't have any access to the internet, my advanced education could not amuse me. I was at a loss as to what I could do with myself. Just as I was about to go downstairs…

Ms. Jenna suddenly walked in. I was shocked. She never came into _any_ of the kids' rooms, especially not any of the kids she hated. I sat there with my mouth agape until she said, "Isabella-"

I cut her off firmly, saying, "My name is Bella!"

Ever since last Saturday's dinner, Ms. Jenna seemed to harbor a grudge against me. She gave me the worst chores possible, ignored my presence, which I didn't really mind, and when she did choose to acknowledge my existence, she refused to call me 'Bella' just to spite me!

"Whatever," she continued, "there's a family here to see you by the name of Volturi." She then turned on her heel and walked away with a weird swing to her hips.

I got up off my bed. ' _At least this is something to do,'_ I thought as I made my way down the stairs. I stopped at last step when I looked up to see a group of people all with chalky white skin and black eyes. I thought back to when that woman attacked my family. While her eyes were a bright crimson, there was one moment they flashed to black when she inhaled through her nose. They were vampires!

' _Powerful coven… Want your power… The leaders… The strongest… '_ The voice from the attack was back! As my eyes flickered over each of the vampires, the voice named each of them. ' _Aro… Caius… Marcus… Jane… Alec… Demetri… Felix…'_

I took a deep breath and forced myself to continue walking forward to the Volturi. I stopped stiffly in front of the one named Aro, squaring my shoulders. I formally said, "Hello Aro."

A look of shock crossed his face before he could mask it. He then smiled widely, looking akin to the grinch, and responded, saying, "Hello Isabella. You obviously know our names; what else do you know?"

The blonde man… Caius, I think, then stepped forward, a hard look on his face. After seeing this, the soft pink bubble that protected me from the vampire attack projected around me. I decided to call it a shield since it defended me from the assault. Pink waves continuously flowed out of me, and they all stood there dumbfounded.

Caius reached out to touch the misty bubble cautiously and then pressed more firmly when his fingers did not go through it. When nothing happened again, he turned to Aro and nodded his head curtly.

"I know what you are. Vampires," I replied. "What are you doing here? What is it that you want?"

Aro answered, saying, "Dear Isabella, we wish for you to join the Volturi Guard. Because of your shield, we are not able to kill you for knowing our secret, so we will give you two options. You can come with us right now. We will raise you to fight, and change you when you turn twenty. The alternative is you can get adopted by another family, but we will come for you when you turn eighteen so you can be changed and then you shall train as a vampire."

I thought about those two options. They weren't exactly giving me much of a choice. I then thought of a quick comeback. "How will you get me? You said my shield would keep you from killing me, could it not be used to keep you from changing me?" I asked.

His countenance remained the same, but I could see his eyes harden. "My dear child," he said in a steely voice, "we are the most powerful coven of vampires. We have insurmountable ways to track you. No matter where you run or hide, we will find you. It could take weeks, months, years, but we will catch you when you least expect it. Now, _what is your choice_?"

I faltered a little but quickly decided to go with the second option. Any freedom was better than none. "If I'm not adopted within two weeks, you may come for me. I understand that your tracker will find me if I am adopted within the time frame."

I gingerly held out my hand to strike the deal, and Aro eagerly grabbed my hand with both of his. As we shook hands, a look of confusion passed over his face, and he frowned while muttering, "She has a powerful mental shield as well."

After Aro released my hand from his grip, I nodded and turned to walk back to my room. There was no point in lingering.

The Volturi filed past me, and when Aro passed me, he stuck a scroll that had my name on it in beautiful calligraphy in my left hand. In my right hand he put a medium sized package. It too had my name on it in calligraphy.

There was one change to my name that bothered me, although it was to be expected. The scroll read ' _Isabella Marie Volturi'_. Volturi, not Swan.

I stood in the doorway, mulling over the change in my last name. Were they really that confident that I would say yes? Granted, Aro did have to threaten me, but still.

I was pulled out of my thoughts by the sound of a door slamming, and I hurried up the stairs.

Just as I was about to open my door, a hand on my shoulder forced me to turn around, and I found myself staring into Avalyn's stormy purple eyes.

"Hi Avalyn," I greeted tiredly.

She got straight to her point. "You shouldn't get involved with the Volturi. They are bad news."

I sighed and said, "I'm sorry Avalyn, but my fate is already sealed. How do you know of the Volturi anyway?"

"It doesn't matter," she replied.

"Yes it does," I stubbornly said.

"Bella," Avalyn said sharply, "just drop it, okay?"

She walked away before I could say anything in return, so I trudged into my room.

I drifted through the rest of the day, my body on autopilot as I thought of my bleak future and Avalyn's secrets.

I finished my nightly routine and immediately climbed into bed at eight-thirty, turning out all the lights. The only light coming into the room came from the small crack under the door, and that soon vanished.

I was both physically and mentally tired, but I could not fall asleep. I lay awake in total darkness, struggling to shut my mind down. When unconsciousness finally dragged me under its blanket, I still thought of all my unanswered questions. Was there anyone more confused than me?

{{{{{{{{{{}}}}}}}}}}

 _September 7th, 1997_

My day was not going my way whatsoever.

Breakfast was uneventful, although Ava kept staring at me while Gracey chattered on. It seemed to me that it wouldn't matter to her if the world was ending she would continue to talk.

When breakfast ended, everyone jumped up to go outside. I hurried upstairs to grab a jacket since it was a little chilly, but just as I was about to open the door, Ms. Jenna called and said there was a woman here to see me.

I trudged into the living room. As soon as I saw the woman, I knew she was a vampire. There was no need for the voice in my head, yet it made its presence known to me anyways.

' _Maria,'_ it whispered angrily, like it was talking through gritted teeth.

I could tell Maria was not a woman I could trust. She looked to be of Mexican descent, but her chalky skin and crazed red eyes showed something more sinister. She was terrifying.

We went through the same process as the Volturi. Maria gave me the same options with slight changes. The first option was she would adopt me today, and I would observe her army until I was old enough to be changed. Once I was changed, I would become her personal bodyguard. The second option was I could get adopted by another family, and she would come for me when I was sixteen.

I told her that if I wasn't adopted within three weeks, she could come for me. I figured the Volturi would be better than Maria.

Maria also gave me a gift. It was a small blue box with gold swirls decorating the edges that she set down on the coffee table. She told me to open it later, and we bid each other good day.

I ran to my room. I put Maria's gifts on my bed then opened my closet to dig through my messenger bag and found the package the Volturi gave me. I flung it on my bed and closed my bedroom door so no one would see anything they shouldn't.

I opened the Volturi's package first. There was a lighter with tiny calligraphy on it, spelling out my name. I also found a midnight black cloak that was a few sizes too big on me. It to had my name on it in a beautiful embroidery. On the scroll with my name on it was a list of the Volturi Guard and all of their abilities.

Next was Maria's gift. I reached out to open the box, only to feel a stinging pain on my right forearm. I hissed before rolling up the sleeve of my shirt to see a silver, crescent-shaped scar where I felt the stinging sensation. I traced the shape lightly when I heard the voice again. ' _Look inside the box… '_

I peered inside and found a note and picture at the bottom. I reached in and accidentally touched the box six more times. Each time my skin came into contact with the box, another bite mark appeared on my right arm. I closed the box with my left hand and got a mark on that arm. I finally read the note so I could understand what was going on.

 _Dearest Isabella_

 _If you have bite marks, do not worry, the box did not bite you. This is a sign that you are meant to join our race. You were born to become a vampire. Join me, and be our Southern Belle._

 _Yours,_

 _Maria, Queen of the South_

I gingerly reached out with my left hand and touched the box once more, immediately feeling a stinging sensation.

I started hyperventilating. Why me? Why did vampires have to mess with my life? To try and calm myself down, I picked up the picture that was in the box. It depicted a man with chin-length curls and dark eyes. I guess that meant his eyes were red. He was covered in crescent-shaped scars and was standing next to Maria. The back read, ' _Major Whitlock's 10th Victory'_

After examining it more thoroughly, I decided to put my so called 'gifts' in the back of my closet. ' _Out of sight, out of mind,'_ I thought.

I tucked the box under my left arm, receiving three more stinging bite marks. I had seven on my right arm and five on my left. I put the 'gifts' in the back of the closet, and when I turned around, Avalyn was standing there.

"You need to stay away from vampires," she said bluntly.

' _What!'_ I thought. How does she know about vampires?

She seemed to realize her mistake. "I, uh," she stuttered, "um, nevermind."

"Why should I?" I spit out, my anger and confusion over vampires building up. "You're so cryptic Avalyn. When I mention my sister, you shut down. When I asked how you knew of the Volturi, you pushed me away. Now you are saying to stay away from vampires, but you won't tell me how you know about them. Why do you care so much anyways?"

She stood there for a few seconds before spinning on her heel and dashing out of the room.

My body started shaking, and I fell down in the back of the closet. I began to cry, all my frustration pouring out of me in the form of tears.

I curled up in a ball, crying until I could cry no more. I finally fell unconscious, exhausted as I was.

{{{{{{{{{{}}}}}}}}}}

 _September 11th, 1997_

Life has been hell these past few days.

I once again was stuck doing the same routine that I'd been stuck doing since I was dropped off here. Instead of reading when I finished with my chores though, I sat on my bed holding my legs while I stared blankly out the window.

When the sun set and we were told it was lights out, I stayed curled in a ball on the bed. I couldn't get to sleep, too afraid of my nightmares. By the time I did fall asleep, I ended up only getting about six hours before I awakened screaming and crying into my pillow.

Ms. Jenna was as snooty as ever, always giving me the most disgusting and grueling chores, but at least she did not openly talk about my nightmares anymore.

Avalyn was no longer speaking to me, and whenever I entered a room she would find some excuse to leave. I wanted to apologize for lashing out at her, yet some small part of me felt like she should tell me what was going on, that I deserved some answers.

I had finished my chores earlier than usual, so it was around five. I had an hour until dinner time, but I was not doing anything with myself; I had resumed my position on the bed while staring out the window at the fall leaves. It was definitely getting cooler. Autumn was most certainly on its way.

I expected I would be left alone until dinner, when I was forced to be in the company of other human beings. I had become quite invisible around here, just the way I prefered it. No one wanted to associate with the girl who didn't speak or always had her nose stuck in a book.

Alas, spending time with me, myself, and I was apparently not going to be possible today; Ms. Jenna waltzed into to my bedroom. And I was so looking forward to staring out my window.

"There is some family called the Cullens here to meet you brats, so get downstairs," she said before flouncing away. She was so weird.

I slowly uncurled myself from my ball, stretching like a cat as I did so. That felt rather good.

I started walking downstairs, coming to a quick halt on the bottom step. I felt a slight sense of deja vu from Saturday. The Cullens were obviously not related, yet they all had the same chalky skin and golden eyes.

They were all incredibly gorgeous. There was a young, blonde man that looked like a movie star, a woman standing next to him who looked very motherly. A pretty blonde girl who appeared standoffish, but seemed to melt around the children. She too had a motherly air about her. Next to her there was an intimidating dark haired man who was smiling with crooked dimples. An excited pixie looking girl with black hair was bouncing on her toes, and the man from Maria's black and white picture was standing with his arm around her. I tensed slightly at seeing him, but I could now see that he had honey blonde hair and instead of his eyes being red, they were a soft gold color, like the rest of the family. He had a look of pain on his face. _Why?_ Then there was a bronze haired boy who I was automatically drawn to; he seemed friendly, yet he had a protective stance about him. Something in me knew he would be a good friend to have.

They had the same unnatural beauty as the Volturi and Maria, but how could they be vampires when they had gold eyes?

' _Vegetarian vampires…'_ The voice whispered to me.

"What's a vegetarian vampire?" I muttered under my breath. They all looked shocked. Did they hear me?

The voice spoke to me again, this time in a 'duh' sort of tone. ' _All vampires… have super speed… strength… sight… smell… and hearing… '_

That did make sense. As I made my way to stand at the back of the group _,_ they seemed to be more wary of me. Really? Lil' ol' human me made seven vampires wary?

The Cullens also seemed to be eyeing Avalyn. I wondered what that was about, but brushed it off so I wouldn't get too sidetracked.

"Hello, my name is Carlisle, and this is my wife, Esme," the blonde movie star said, holding the motherly woman closer to him. "This is my family," he continued, now gesturing towards each person as he rattled their names off, "Rosalie and Emmett," he said. They turned out to be the standoffish blonde and 'The Hulk', as I decided to call the intimidating man in my head. "Jasper and Alice," he continued, who ended up being the overexcited pixie and tall honey-blonde man. "And Edward," Carlisle finished, now waving his hand over to the bronze-haired teen.

"Why don't you tell us about yourselves?" He asked.

Gracie was more than happy to oblige. In her perky voice she said, "Hi, I'm Gracie Walker and I'm seven! I love shopping, pink, talking, makeovers, more shopping, and more pink!"

"I want her, her, her!" Alice squealed.

The rest of them chuckled at her antics while Carlisle told her, "Calm down, Alice. You may want her, but the others would like to meet everyone else."

Avalyn went next. "I'm Avalyn, and I hate talking," she said with a glare. They looked at her like she was an alien after that.

' _I wonder why,'_ I thought.

' _Gifts… Edward… reads minds… Alice… sees the future… Jasper… is an empath… '_ the voice told me.

I wasn't sure how I felt about Alice and Jasper, but a least Edward can't read my mind because of the mental shield Aro said I had.

I still was curious about why they looked like they were having an intense conversation with Avalyn, but I figured I'd get answers soon enough.

I had tuned all the other introductions out while I was lost in thought. When I came back to the land of the living, they were on the last boy, Gabriel Truman. He gave a typical little boys' response.

"Uh, I'm Gabe, and I like video games. I'm eight, and I don't think girls have cooties. I like sports and watching TV. I also have three goals in life: get a girlfriend, get her to kiss me, and take over the world!"

Emmett and Jasper gave small smiles and nodded at him.

"Excuse me," interrupted Ms. Jenna. "Our youngest boy, Carter, is a nine month old who is currently sleeping. Let me know if you'd like to see him." She batted her lashes in what appeared to be a flirtatious manner.

The Cullens shook their heads then turned to me. I tugged on the sleeves of my shirt; it was a nervous habit, and they were all staring intently at me.

I was still undecided on whether or not I should tell them about my passions and dreams. Did I want to get out of this hellhole? Absolutely. Did I want to go with these 'vegetarian vampires', whatever that meant? I wasn't sure.

' _Go… with them,'_ the voice faintly said.

' _I'm not sure… '_ I thought.

' _Go with them!"_ The voice said again, this time with more power.

' _Okay,'_ I thought to the voice, ' _but only because you have helped me in the past, whoever you are.'_

I tugged on my shirt sleeve again and took a deep breath. I put a small smile on my face and began. "Hi, my name is Isabella Swan, but I prefer Bella! I love music and have created a few compositions for the piano and flute. I like architecture, gardening, and would like to be a decent cook when I grow up. I enjoy studying cars and even signed myself up for _Car and Driver_. I recently became interested in Civil War history, and no offense to any Yanks, but I'm on the Confederates side. While they had some bad views on certain topics, like slavery, they also had some really great ideas for the government. Although it isn't really my thing, having grown up on a small town Chief of Police's and kindergarten teacher's salary, I will let you give me makeovers and go on shopping trips with you. I love literature, and one of my dreams is to do something in that field, but I do like studying medical journals and texts. I will also joke around with you if I feel like it!"

All of the Cullens looked shocked, even Edward, who had been staring sullenly at the ground most of the time.

I started to feel self-conscious under their gaze, but they suddenly surrounded me in a big group hug. They all said, "Welcome to your new home!" Emmett being the loudest.

Once they let go, I smiled and invited them upstairs to my room so they could help me pack my stuff.

Upon opening my door, I cringed to see how cluttered my room was. My sheet music was scattered over the desk, and I had random stacks of books here and there, some on the top of the stack lying open. The bookshelf was only being used for a few of my medical journals. ' _There was so much more that I had to leave behind,'_ I thought sadly, running my fingers over one of the books that was lying open, ' _Sense and Sensibility'_.

I shook off my sadness and strode over to the bookshelf, gathering up my journals and cradling them in my arms. I looked each of the Cullens in the eyes and told them very seriously, "These are my journals, do NOT touch them without my permission or else you will meet the real side of Isabella Marie Swan Vol- uh, just Swan for now."

I winced mentally as I thought of how I was already losing myself to the Volturi, just by using their name.

They either didn't notice my mistake or they shrugged it off, probably laughing at the thought of a tiny human being able to hurt them. I snapped at them for underestimating me. "I'm serious. I own my dad's old lighter. You will not live to see the sun rise again."

That shut them up real quick, and I gave a small smile so I would seem less menacing while I apologized. "I'm sorry; you know I was just joking, right? My journals are just very special to me."

They smiled back at me and Carlisle walked purposefully over to me. He got down on one knee and asked in a kind voice, "May I please have a look at your journals?"

I grinned, biting my tongue so it wouldn't be too obvious, and said, "Yes."

He took them and walked over to my desk and sat down reading. Everyone else went to do their thing.

Edward sat down on my bed with a frustrated look on his face. It was probably because he couldn't read my mind. I grinned at the thought.

Rosalie and Alice dove for the closet and began packing my bags as fast as humanly possible. Or was it as fast as vampires could pack bags? I could not tell from my viewpoint.

Esme stood in the doorway with her hands clasped together and a warm smile on her face. I could tell she was adoring the scene in front of her.

Emmett, who I could tell was definitely the jokester of the family, plopped himself down on my beanbag and grinned impishly.

Jasper leaned into the corner of the room, his sharp eyes darting over everything that was going on in front of him. He then breathed in deeply and his eyes flashed over to me. My arms, more specifically. Did he know about my scars?

Thinking of my scars reminded me of the 'gifts' I had received. I rushed to the closet and quickly stuffed them in an extra bag. I didn't want the Cullens to find out about the Volturi and Maria and then not want me; they were too good of a family to lose.

When I came out of the closet with the bag thrown over my shoulders, I got some strange looks. Jasper looked just about ready to interrogate me, so before he could, I said, "These are gifts from other families who wanted to adopt me. They're supposed to be for my eyes only."

That seemed to appease most of them, but Edward, Carlisle, and Jasper still looked inquisitive.

Just then Rosalie and Alice came out of the closet with one small suitcase. Alice instantly ran over to me. "As soon as possible," she said excitedly, "we are taking you shopping. You don't have the proper amount of clothes."

"Proper?" I questioned in a light tone.

Alice just grinned and bounced on her toes. I guess that was the most energy she could expel in the foster home.

Her excitement was infectious, apparently, because I found myself tapping my fingers against my leg lightly in anticipation for getting on the road to my new home.

Carlisle and Esme got everything sorted out with the adoption papers while I said goodbye to Gracey. I tried to search for Avalyn but eventually had to accept defeat.

We packed my bags in the trunk and we all loaded up into the SUV. It only had seven seats. ' _If you're planning on adding an eighth member to your family, wouldn't it be reasonable to get a car with eight seats, or just drive two cars?'_ I thought.

As the smallest person, I was the one who was forced to sit on one of their laps while we drove to the hotel. None of them minded, of course. I was probably lighter than a backpack to them.

I climbed onto Edward's lap, and off we went!

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 _What did ya'll think? Please review!_

 **Bookwormlover1**


	4. Chapter 3

**Thank you to Rosabelle Crombwell for letting me use her plotline!**

 **Also, thank you to RDoster2012 for being my beta!**

 _Good gracious, I am really bad at keeping a schedule for updates. I could give you excuses about schoolwork getting in the way or having writer's block(although that is slightly true), but the full truth is I fell prey to the lures of other authors' fanfics and real print books. Don't all of us on this website have that sleep disorder called reading? Anyways, I am so, SO, **SO,** sorry for seemingly abandoning this story for months. Please don't hate me. *Hides face behind journal. So, I'm going to stop groveling now and let y'all get on with the chapter. Happy Reading!_

 **Bookwormlover1**

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Word Count-3576

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 **Chapter 3- Frustrations**

 **Edward POV:**

 _September 10_ _th_ _, 1997_

I was running through the forest, my speed making it possible to leave the thoughts of my family behind me. The feeling of the wind in my hair, and the absence of extra thoughts was a wonderful feeling.

There was only one place I wanted to be in this moment, the only place I could actually be secluded and alone. Changing my direction, I sprinted towards my meadow; it only took a few minutes to reach it.

Ava had called Carlisle a week and a half ago, rambling on and telling us that we just _had_ to go to our house in Forks, and that she would explain everything once we were together. We came as quick as we could, but Ava wasn't here, so now we're stuck here waiting on her to show up or call us.

I walked to the center of the perfectly circular meadow and sat down among the wildflowers, and I sighed contently. This was the perfect night to visit this space, the sky was clear and the moon was out, causing the night blooming flowers to be out. They lent a sweet smell to space, and the grass was soft against my skin, and I was… being interrupted.

"Edward! Edward! Oh Eddie boy… where are you hiding?" Emmett's voice cut through the silence and I was instantly annoyed.

I also knew that correcting him would fall of deaf ears, but I do it anyways, every time!

"Emmett! How many times do I have to tell you not to call me that? My name is E.D.W.A.R.D, and I don't know why you insist on calling me that. What is so important that you had to follow me here and invade on my private space?" I ground out through clenched teeth.

' _Jeeze! Why must you be so dramatic little brother? Oh! This place is nice! I wonder id Rosie would like to come out here and play a game with me."_

I growled at Emmett's thoughts, there was a reason why my family didn't come out here. They all knew that this was _my_ sanctuary. I quickly blocked his thoughts when he started to envision him and Rosalie in this place.

"Seriously Emmett, why did you come out here?" I ground out, trying to get him to focus on his purpose again.

' _Oh right! Carlisle wants a family meeting.'_ He answered in his thoughts. Then I caught the rest of it as he turned to walk away.

' _We might adopt a little human child tomorrow. Rosie is so excited! I hope they will become a great sibling, and I can have a new partner in crime! I can teach them all the best pranks!"_ His thoughts were giddy as he strolled away.

' _WHAT?!'_ My head roared. A human? A child? In a house full of vampires? NO! This cannot happen!

I will do whatever it takes to prevent this! I vowed to myself.

I leapt up and _whooshed_ past Emmett, running through the forest at breakneck speed, this time I did not enjoy the run. The house came into view a few seconds later, and I jumped over the stairs and crashed through the open front door, coming to a skidding halt in front of Carlisle.

"Carlisle! What are you thinking? We cannot have a human child in this house! No… just no! Are you insane? I demanded, my voice rising to a shrill yell, almost vibrating the windows.

"Edward, son, it is a possibility. Besides, Esme wants a child, and I would do anything for her. The others have also expressed an interest in adopting a child. Perhaps you would enjoy having someone new here as well." Carlisle said softly, trying to not cause more conflict. His thoughts were begging me to reconsider my outburst.

' _Please think about it Edward. Ava has said she would not mind adopting a child as well, and you of all people know how she feels about kids. They remind her of her little sister too much.'_

I mentally sighed; I wanted my newest sister to be happy, for the whole family to be happy. I do like children, more so than human adults to a certain extent. Their thoughts were mainly simple, or they just didn't think at all, but they did tend to smell better than adults, more pure. Still… it was just too dangerous for humans to be around us that closely.

I started fishing for something else that could keep us from adopting the child, and then my eyes landed on Jasper. And I knew it was a low blow, but I was becoming desperate.

"But what about Jasper? He could lose control, he could…" Alice cut me off, and the tone of her voice made me stop dead.

"Edward Anthony Masen Cullen! I'm warning you… Not one more word! Jasper will _not_ harm a hair on this child's head! So just stop!"

And then as I was standing there gaping at her, it hit me, the ultimate determent. The Volturi!

"Alice, the Volturi will find out! We will all die, or they will kill the child, or possibly take them away. I, am the first son of Carlisle and Esme, and I am making this decision. I am saying no! No humans in this house! It is either the child or me." I stated firmly to the family.

As I stood there staring Alice down I noticed that chaos was breaking out around the room.

Rosalie was screaming profanities at me, calling me every name she could think of both out loud and in her thoughts, Emmett was murderous, and glaring daggers at me for daring to upset his wife. Alice was distraught, and so angry… And Jasper, he was rolling his shirtsleeves up, taunting me with his thoughts.

' _You wanna fight? Come on over here and we'll go round for round!'_ His thoughts more venomous than ever before.

I shook my head in his direction; I didn't want to fight, at least not today. It wasn't worth destroying the forest.

Esme's eyes were filled with tears that would never fall while her body shook with horrible sobs. Carlisle, whilst comforting his distraught wife was pleading with me in his thoughts. He wanted me to at least meet the children at the group home before making a true decision.

"I would love to have another sibling, but it's just too dangerous. Did you all forget that we're vampires?" I asked the room in general.

"You don't say!" Emmett sneered at me with his sarcastic remark.

"A human's life will be in constant danger being with us!" Was my response.

"I checked the future!" Alice shouted.

"What if we accidently kill him or her? Humans are just too fragile!" I was losing this battle, and I knew it already, but I just couldn't stop myself.

"I checked the future!" Alice quipped again.

"Shut up Alice!" My voice lost some of its volume then, and I knew I would give in.

"No! If I do, I'll just keep screaming at you in my head!" Alice responded cheekily, sticking her tongue out at me childishly.

I sat down in the chair heavily; there was no point in continuing to argue. I would go meet the children, and then if I thought it was going to be too much, I would leave.

"Fine, I will go meet the children, but I am letting you all know right now, if need be, I will leave this family!"

Everything went silent instantly. I wasn't sure if it was because I agreed to see the girl, or my proclamation that I would leave the family. I blocked their thoughts as best as I could; I didn't want to hear any more.

{{{{{{{{{{}}}}}}}}}}

 _September 11th, 1997_

The brand new SUV that Carlisle bought for this occasion sped down the highway under Rosalie's careful hand. I didn't understand why it was necessary for the new car, we could have just taken two cars like we usually did and not be cramped all together, but I guess it wasn't up to me to question his motives.

I was glad that with our vampire reflexes we were able to make the usual four hour drive in just over two. Being cramped in this car was only bearable because I didn't need to move around as much as a human would, but I was thankful that we would be there sooner rather than later. Judging from everyone else's thoughts, they were also not pleased to be so cramped in this car.

We finally arrived, and I was contemplating kissing the ground when we stepped out, but decided that it wouldn't be a good idea, so I followed suit and got out of the SUV and straightened my clothes like everyone else.

I made sure my features were impassive while Carlisle knocked on the door. A woman who looked to be in her early thirties answered. "Hello," she said in what she thought to be a sultry voice, but was really quite nasally. I looked into her thoughts then.

'Another _family has come to see these little brats? Ever since that Swan child got here I've had more families thinking about adoption than I've had in three years. Oh well, the men in this family are extremely hot, and maybe they'll take one of these urchins off my hands. Hopefully it's that Swan girl.'_

I stopped listening to her disgusting thoughts then, barely restraining myself from hissing at her. Why would she get into taking care of children if she despised them? I wondered who the "Swan girl" she seemed to hate was.

She introduced herself as Ms. Jenna and led my family and I inside to a room she simply called "The Meeting Room." Ms. Jenna then picked a gong up from where it was leaning against the wall and proceeded to bang it, as it seemed to be the tool she used to get the children downstairs faster.

The children came bounding down the stairs then. The beating of their hearts and pounding of their feet created a strange rhythm, though not altogether unpleasant. They all seemed to be excited at the prospect of being adopted.

Then came the sounds of footsteps on the stairs, but no heartbeat. Our newest family member came into view; we stared at her in complete shock. What was she doing here? She winced slightly, and I could tell she was being bombarded by our questions and thoughts.

"I promise to explain later, okay?" Ava whispered at vampire speed.

None of us were satisfied, but we were willing to wait.

Ms. Jenna then did a headcount and realized one child was missing.

' _That stupid Swan girl,'_ she thought. ' _How is she unable to hear the racket these idiotic rascals are making?'_

The children waited patiently while Ms. Jenna stalked upstairs. Thanks to our enhanced senses, my family and I could hear when she said, "There is some family called the Cullens here to meet you brats, so get downstairs." We listened as the girl sighed and seemingly stretched before making her way down the stairs. She stopped dead on the bottom step, her eyes cataloging my family's features, giving me ample time to study her.

She had ivory skin, quite like a vampire's, but it had a slight pink tinge to it, letting me know she was human. She had waist length mahogany hair that framed a heart-shaped face. She was adorable now, but I could see that she would grow to be a beautiful woman. Her eyes flashed to mine then, and I was surprised by how deep her eyes were. Most humans with brown eyes had eyes that were flat, yet hers were soulful, like a pool of molten chocolate.

Then she muttered the words that changed everything.

"What's a vegetarian vampire?"

' _WHAT! How does she know about us? Who is this girl?'_ All these thoughts and more were swimming in my head as well as my family's. All of my family, except for Ava. There was a guilty undertone to her thoughts as she recited lines from her favorite plays in Latin.

I eyed her suspiciously, the rest of the family catching on. The little girl who somehow knew about us moved to stand at the end of the line the children had formed.

I decided to read her thoughts to see how she knew about us, but where her thoughts should be, there was only a blank space. I tried focusing only on her; that was a mistake. Everyone else's thoughts I'd been blocking were suddenly shouting in my head.

I shook my head, contemplating this new phenomenon. Who was this girl?

I suddenly realized I had missed the other children's introductions while scrutinizing the girl. She was the last child to speak about herself, and she seemed to be arguing with herself. Could it be… I turned to look at Ava, and she looked decidedly away from me, staring intently at the floor.

The young girl finally calmed down. She took a deep breath and tugged on the sleeve of her cardigan before beginning.

"Hi, my name is Isabella Swan, but I prefer Bella! I love music and have created a few compositions for the piano and flute. I like architecture, gardening, and would like to be a decent cook when I grow up. I enjoy studying cars and even signed myself up for _Car and Driver_. I recently became interested in Civil War history, and no offense to any Yanks, but I'm on the Confederates side. While they had some bad views on certain topics, like slavery, they also had some really great ideas for the government. Although it isn't really my thing, having grown up on a small town Chief of Police's and kindergarten teacher's salary, I will let you give me makeovers and go on shopping trips with you. I love literature, and one of my dreams is to do something in that field, but I do like studying medical journals and texts. I will also joke around with you if I feel like it!"

My family and I stared at the girl, no Bella, in shock. She was rather complex for a human, and advanced for her age. The fact that she was also interested in hobbies each member of the family enjoyed doing as well was remarkable.

We broke out of our stupor as we realized Bella was getting self-conscious, surrounding her in a group hug, excitedly saying, "Welcome to your new home!"

She smiled and led us to her bedroom. Bella cringed at the slight mess, but otherwise did not outwardly show any signs of being upset at having us in her room.

Bella flabbergasted us all, though, when she gathered up what Carlisle recognized as medical journals and stated, "These are my journals, do NOT touch them without my permission or else you will meet the real side of Isabella Marie Swan Vol- uh, just Swan for now."

I briefly pondered over why she slipped when saying her name, but then laughed with the rest of my family at the thought of this innocent little human being able to hurt us.

What really astonished us was when she retaliated by snapping, "I'm serious. I own my dad's old lighter. You will not live to see the sun rise again."

That shut us up quickly.

' _Holy shit, she means business,'_ Emmett thought.

Bella smiled sheepishly as she apologized. "I'm sorry; you know I was just joking, right? My journals are just very special to me."

We grinned at her and Carlisle strode over to her, got down on one knee, and asked kindly, "May I please have a look at your journals?"

She bit her tongue, trying to fight a grin, though we all saw it. "Yes," she said simply.

Carlisle took the journals from her and sat down at her desk. The rest of the family took up positions around the room. I myself took residence upon her bed, having another go at reading her thoughts; I was as unsuccessful as last time.

' _Edward,'_ Jasper started, directing his thoughts at me, ' _there's somethin' up with her scent. Doesn't she smell a little off to you?'_

I inhaled deeply, noticing the same strange scent on her as Jasper had. I nodded slightly, about to speak about it with him at a level Bella would be unable to hear when she surprised us all by dashing into the closet and coming out with a bulky bag thrown over her shoulders. At our questioning gazes, she said, "These are gifts from other families who wanted to adopt me. They're supposed to be for my eyes only."

Everyone pretended to accept her answer and went back to what they were doing before, although I am certain that Carlisle, Jasper, and I maintained curious looks.

Just then Rosalie and Alice came out of the closet with one small suitcase. Alice instantly ran over to me. "As soon as possible," she said excitedly, "we are taking you shopping. You don't have the proper amount of clothes."

"Proper?" Bella lightly inquired.

Alice simply grinned and bounced on her toes.

Carlisle and Esme went downstairs to take care of Bella's adoption papers while she went to say goodbye to her younger friend. Then we put her one suitcase into the back of the SUV, and Bella clambered into my lap during the short ride to the hotel.

After a few minutes into the ride, Bella suggested we play Truth or Dare. We stared blankly at her until she said, "Well, who's going first?"

Emmett immediately said yes, making Jasper his first victim.

"Dare," Jasper said lazily, still thinking over the mystery that was Bella.

Emmett grinned evilly. "When we get to the hotel," he said, "you have to act gay and flirt with all the men you see, except us, of course."

' _Aww, shit!'_ Jasper thought, out loud saying, "Shoot, I hate you Emmett!"

We laughed at his expense before moving on with the game. Jasper turned to Bella and asked, "Truth or Dare?"

"Dare?" she replied hesitantly.

He smiled at her nervousness for a second, then he said, "Let me see your right arm, darlin'."

She started breathing heavily until Jasper pushed a wave of calm over her. My family and I were once again dumbfounded; it was such a simple thing. Why was Bella so frightened?

Jasper thought, ' _It's got somethin' to do with the strange scent, Edward.'_

Once Bella completely calmed, Jasper gave her a level stare whilst raising an eyebrow. She sighed and said, "Fine, but when we get to the hotel."

He gave her that, knowing he would get his answers when we arrived. Bella turned to Alice and asked, "Alice, Truth or Dare?"

"Dare, of course," Alice chimed.

"Alright, Jasper, now I can get you back through your ma- I mean, girlfriend. Alice, I dare you to-"

"You are going to have to finish the game inside, Bella," Carlisle interrupted. "We are here."

I held Bella as we walked to check in, marveling at how I could have kept myself from meeting her had I not agreed to see the orphans for my family's sake. I heard chuckling from Jasper's thoughts.

' _It's amazin' how he didn't even want to adopt a child in the first place, and now he's so taken with her because of her maturity. Then again, we all are. Bella is quite the intriguin' creature.'_

I had to agree with his assessment; Bella was something else. His thoughts moved on to other things he wanted to do with Bella.

' _I can't wait to discuss the Civil War with her. It's amazin' that she's on the Confederate side. It'll be nice to show her my southern accent.'_

I coughed to cover up my laughter. ' _Stay outta my head,'_ he thought.

Carlisle booked three rooms for us, to keep up appearances. Once all of the "luggage" was placed in the rooms, the family congregated in the largest room. We had Bella sit on the couch and formed a circle around her. Her panicked countenance had me whispering, "Give her some space. Something has her worried."

We each took a seat around the room, though Jasper remained standing behind the chair Alice occupied. Jasper nodded to Bella and said, "Well go on. Show us your arm; you promised."

"You'll still want me?" she questioned meekly, her small body tense. No child should have that much anxiety.

Everyone's heart broke at that small inquisition. What was so wrong with her arm that could possibly make us want to send her away?

She nodded slowly, took a deep breath, and pushed up the sleeve of her cardigan to reveal seven perfect crescent moon scars only a vampire's bite would leave.

We were speechless.

At our mute state, Bella's face crumpled, and she bit her lip as though to keep herself from crying. She rushed to push her sleeve down to hide the evidence of her being different from other human children, but in one swift motion only vampires could achieve, Jasper pulled her sweater completely off.

Once again, we were aghast to see five bites marring the smooth skin of her left arm. Bella curled herself into a tiny ball, hiding her face in her knees and long hair. What had happened to Isabella Swan before my family met her?


End file.
